Yogyakarta
-- Cultural Capital of Java

In
the heart of south-centra lJava is a province and
capital city with a tremendous multicultural and multireligious history.
This is Yogyakarta, pronounced JOEG-ja-kart-a and known simply among the locals
as "Jogja." Jogja is a prominent university city, a center of
Javanese art, and a bastion of modernity among a people with a deeply-held sense
of tradition. Behind Bali Island and
Indonesian capital region of Jakarta, it rates as the
third-most common destination among foreign tourists or businessmen.

Jogja
is also unique in one important political way, it is the one remaining sultanate
in Indonesia. While the other provinces in the country have since turned
to western-style democratic processes. Our visit to Jogja
was family-oriented, as Vero's family roots originated
there.

We arrived at night after a very long drive but had a
beautiful starlit sky to enjoy. The family took us to a popular hang-out
spot near the Kraton where we sat on weaved-bamboo mats on the street and
enjoyed a few bowls of a traditional soup known as "Wedang Romde".
This soup was contained a ginger broth, with bread croutons, pine fruits,
grilled peanuts, and rice dumplings. It was the perfect welcome to the
city. Then, after spending the next day touring some of the regional
sights, we came back to Jogja in mid-afternoon and toured it in depth.

The city's greatest downtown landmark is the Kraton, shown in
the second photograph. The Kraton is a large fortress that serves as the
home of the Sultan of Yogyakarta. The front part of the Kraton facing the
city is open to the public for a nominal fee, and is a tremendous museum for the
history of the region.

The photograph shows the main gate facing
the city. What was special about this gate was its multireligious
symbology, signifying the peaceful co-existence of the Muslims, Hindus,
Buddhists, and Christians over the provinces long history. The gold and
red symbol in the center, for example, symbolized Islam, while it was surrounded
by a floral wreath for Christianity, with Hindu gods facing them on both
sides. A Buddhist mask was off the photo above. This was not mere
symbology, this reflected the region's open tolerance of various faiths, as each
had a significant religious landmark nearby (including the Buddhist temple of Borobudur
and the Roman Catholic grotto at Sendang Sono).

Behind
the gate were two very large and impressive stone reliefs showing the history of
the province from ancient times. At each end of the reliefs were two long
buildings containing mannequins dressed in various period costumes, along with
displays dedicated to the various provincial sultans. Detailed on the
reliefs were events involving the original Buddhist occupiers from China,
followed by the Hindus from India, the emergence of a great Kingdom of
Yogyakarta, and later the arrival of the colonial Dutch. A very important
segment of the relief shows how the Dutch came to divide Yogyakarta to two
kingdoms in order to divide the power base -- forming what is now the Yogyakarta
province and the kingdom of Surakarta (more commonly referred to now as 'Solo')
which is now part of Central Java. The two kingdoms have since followed
very different paths in terms of multiculturalism and tolerance, and is a
history with arguably some important lessons for the modern day.

There
was a large marketsquare outside the front of the Kraton, seen through the gate
in the photo. When we visited, it hosted a large traditional market
selling food and local wares. In the middle of the market, at each side of
a sidewalk leading
to the gate, were two very large trees. These trees had great symbolic
value, as they channeled visitors to the gate -- essentially visiting caravans
had to navigate between these two trees in order to be permitted entrance.

Jogja
also hosted a very significant Hindu temple complex, located on the northeast
side of town. Like Borobudur, this complex is
still very active while also serving as a major tourist draw. Over a dozen
temples of various sizes are scattered about an area of a couple square
kilometers, visible along a two-mile-long drive that winds among open grass
fields and scattered trees. One of the largest among the temples was the
Candi Prambanan, shown in the third photograph. It was typical of the
architectural style -- a central cone-shaped structures surrounded by four or
more similar structures in concentric circles. Ordinarily, we might have
had the opportunity to visit the temples themselves, much the way the Hindi
temples on Bali are available to the
public. However, we didn't have enough time to do so, and will reserve
that for future visits.

The bulk of the city's architecture lends itself more to Hindi
influence than any other religion. Most of the city gates reflect this,
even though the gates were clearly modern and set among the major
highways. Portions of the ancient city walls still remain around the Hindu
temple complex as well, and they tended to have Hindu markings. Offsetting
this was a large number of small mosques scattered around the city, many colored
the traditional white reflecting the purity of the Islamic faith.

But apart from the temples, visitors are going to be drawn to
the marvelous Malioboro
shopping district in the heart of the city.

Following a mile-long stretch from the Kraton to the
Yogyakarta rail station, this district is a great place to look for Javanese
goods, particularly clothing. The most popular items use a traditional
fabric known as 'batik', where the cloth is intricately dyed in a wealth of
colors and patterns. Long-sleeve batik shirts are formal-wear for Javanese
men, equivalent to western suits (and much lighter for the hot and humid
weather). Batik items -- jewelry boxes, purses, and other knickknacks --
are also available.

It is also a great place to find something to eat. Lined
along one side of the street are dozens of street vendors selling all sorts of
local foods. If that doesn't sound appealing, there are a variety of
western-style fastfood places along the way as well. We stuck with the
street vendors, where a fried 'local' chicken dinner could fill us for only
about 60 cents a person. (The Javanese distinguish local chicken from the
farmed western-style chickens that tend to have more meat but less taste.
We tend to agree, the local chicken is much better.)

We walked
the whole distance from start to end, but there were other options available to
us. The fourth photograph shows a horsebuggy, traditionally decorated from
the days of Dutch colonialism. That was not to say that everything about
the Dutch were revered. Quite the opposite.

The fifth
photograph shows a monument erected at the Kraton side of the Malioboro,
commemorating the defeat of the Dutch colonists after World War II. The
background was that the Dutch were restored their colonial rights after
forfeiting the archipelago during the War, but by then the Indonesians had
developed a strong sense of independence, and Jogja was one of the early centers
of that movement. Hence, the pluralism that makes Jogja so strong also
fuels its sense of nationalist pride. When this photo was taken, the
monument was being readied as a site for a political rally which seemed to focus
on reducing foreign influence in the political realm (we did not stick around to
find out more). Such rallies are commonplace.

As a
university city, Yogyakarta also harnesses the energy of its many youth.
Its university draws among the best and brightest from around the country, and
large numbers of students could be seen moving about the city at all hours of
the day. The university itself was a remarkable combination of original
architecture and modern facilities, well worth a short drive about.

For
those looking for somewhere other to go than Bali, Yogyakarta ought to be high
on the list. Its central location among so many tremendous landmarks and
its openness and friendliness made it a wonderful place to visit.